Stiffness Characterization Using a Dynamic Heart Phantom and Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the United States [1]. Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) technology can be used to diagnose and evaluate a number of diseases and conditions such as coronary artery disease, damage caused by a heart attack, heart failure, and heart valve problems etc. Given the inherent difficulty in imaging the heart in motion, many efforts have been made to improve cardiac motion tracking and eliminate motion related artifacts. A dynamic heart phantom (DHP) capable of simulating true physiological motions is a valuable research tool for improving quality of MR images and determining critical diagnostic information. For instance, MR images have been used to quantify myocardial strain and estimate soft tissue material parameters and in turn to learn about cardiac structure and function [2–4]. In these studies, heart phantoms made of rubber like materials with known material properties are often used as a mean of validation.